Letters of Recommendation
Most business school applications will require at least one letter of recommendation. Many of the top programs want three. Below are typical requirements at top programs:
- At least two letters of recommendation should be from a professional context.
- At least one recommendation should be from a direct supervisor (this does not apply to college seniors).
- The third recommendation can be written by a professional, extracurricular, or academic reference.
How important are letters of recommendations?
A good letter of recommendation will help backup the professional experience presented in the rest of your application, particularly, your resume and your essays. Therefore, choose your recommenders wisely. Each of your recommendations should be consistent with the information provided in the rest of your application. Any of the following could signal a red flag to an admissions committee:
- What you say you did at a job doesn’t match up with what one of your recommenders says you actually did there. For example, you say in your resume and in your essays that you supervised five employees at XYZ Corp., and your recommender, a manager at XYZ Corp., says that you didn’t supervise any.
- One of your recommenders has some reservations about recommending you to business school. If a person you pick to speak on your behalf cannot recommend you with confidence, what message does that send?
- Your recommendations appear sloppy, without much time or effort taken to complete them. Writing a recommendation can be a very time consuming endeavor. Make sure your recommenders care about you enough to take the time and care this process requires.
- The writing style of your recommendations has a striking resemblance to that of your essays. Be cautious about even drafting a recommendation letter for your contact to edit and submit. Many top schools highly discourage this, and claim to be able to spot a self-written recommendation.
So just how important are recommendations? Well-written recommendations consistent with the overall theme of a strong application can reaffirm an applicant in the eyes of an admissions committee. Usually, however, they will not turn the tides for an applicant with weak grades or GMAT scores.
Here are some general tips for obtaining effective letters of recommendations:
- Ask early. I recommend asking at least a month before the deadline. Give them enough time to write something meaningful that will help your cause.
- Choose your writers wisely. Pick people who know you well and can cite specific examples that will strengthen your application. This is more important than choosing famous recommenders or those with important sounding titles. If the person seems apprehensive about writing it, choose someone else.
- Meet with your writers beforehand to discuss your goals. Make each one aware of your career goals and what you want out of business school. Give them a copy of your resume and a summary of the points you want them to touch on in their recommendations.
- Follow up with each writer and make sure they submit it before the deadline. To be on the safe side, you may even want to impose a deadline a week before the actual deadline.